The 1991 CONCACAF Gold Cup was a remarkable tournament in the Western Hemisphere. The northern half of the hemisphere had played out a tournament before then, but the Gold Cup by name was born that year.

It was also a big jump forward for the United States. Marcelo Balboa captained the U.S. squad to the Gold Cup title that year, scoring twice, taking a red card against Costa Rica, then bouncing back to add a penalty for the Americans’ in a shootout victory in the final against Honduras.